MONTGOMERY — State Rep. Andy Whitt has passed a House Joint Resolution naming a portion of Alabama 53 in honor of Chief Warrant Officer Danny Randolph and Chief Warrant Officer Daniel Wadham, two Tennessee National Guardsmen who were killed in a helicopter training flight in February.

The mile marker 327.9 portion of the highway in Madison County named in their honor is also the site where the crash occurred.

 “It is said that all of us die not once but twice – the first time when we pass away and the second time when our name is spoken for the last time,” Whitt (R-Harvest) said. “By naming this highway after Chief Warrant Officers Randolph and Wadham, we can ensure that their legacy of service is always remembered and their memories are always kept alive.”

Wadham, a resident of Joelton, Tenn., and Randolph, who lived in Murfreesboro, Tenn., were on a routine training mission in a UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter when it crashed in Harvest. They were members of the A Company, 1-230th Assault Helicopter Battalion headquartered in Nashville.

Randolph had 13 years of military service, including a deployment in Afghanistan, and is remembered as a loving father of four children and three stepchildren.

Wadham had 15 years of military service and is survived by his wife, Rosetta, who is a member of E Company, 1-230th Assault Helicopter Battalion; and two children, Lilly and Scarlett.

Whitt’s resolution remembers the fallen soldiers as “two men of impeccable character and limitless courage who stalwartly committed themselves to the defense of their nation.”

HJR37 was co-sponsored by State Reps. James Lomax (R-Huntsville), Rex Reynolds (R-Huntsville), Anthony Daniels (D-Huntsville), Phillip Rigsby (R-Huntsville), Parker Moore (R-Decatur), and Laura Hall (D-Huntsville).